Hostiles

Indian Brave

Despite not being able to move for films of the western genre at one stage in the annals of cinema history, the glut has almost ground to a complete halt over the last few decades. With the likes of The Revenant in 2016 however, we have been treated to something of a drip-feed resurgence, with the direction geared towards quality as opposed to quantity. Following such trends Hostiles – though it’s early days – is likely to be the definitive western of 2018.

Christian Bale excels in the lead role as Sergeant Blocker, a grizzled and experienced army captain, ordered to transport one of his old native adversaries, Yellow Hawk (Wes Studi), along a treacherous route back to his homeland as part of a publicity stunt to appease the civilised folk back east, now the fight​ against the natives is all but over. It’s a simplistic set up that signposts a highly predictable outcome; indeed we have seen the embittered frontiersman humbled by Native Indian wisdom many times before and Hostilesdoesn’t attempt to deviate from this well trodden ground.

Like director Scott Cooper’s previous film Out of the Furnace, which also starred Bale,Hostiles is honest and gritty film-making, despite its contrivances. Visually it is a sight to behold, full of big skies, panoramic backdrops and vivid colour. It is difficult to get things wrong when filming on location and here, quite expertly, cinematographer Masanobu Takayanagi places the viewer in the thick of the scenery. As the terrain changes from dry desert to barren steppe and on to pine forest we get a real sense of the journey undertaken. Sounds add touches of elemental detail too; the popping and cracking of a charred and burnt out log cabin, thunder rolling during a fervently emotive moment or the incessant rain against canvas tents drowning out conversation.  It wouldn’t be too outlandish to describe Hostiles as a rather sensual experience.

The performances are all commendable too, though Wes Studi doesn’t have too much to do and, while Rosamund Pike conveys the pain and anguish of her character’s tragic circumstances, the rapidity with which such circumstances are overcome marks one of the few untidy moments in the script.

One particular arc involving Rory Cochrane as sergeant Thomas Metz, Blocker’s second in command, delves into the psychological effect years of fighting on the front-line has on the soldier’s mind. As Metz’s condition deteriorates along the journey and the emptiness sets in, Cochrane pulls along a measured and sensitive portrayal of a man whose soul has all but left him. We get hints that Blocker may be hollowing out just as fast and it’s not exactly clear what keeps him going, though a waning loyalty to his profession and an unshakable dedication to his men may offer an answer.

When all is said and done this is Bale’s movie and he is terrific as the long faced captain. The conflict the actor expresses as his character is torn between his hatred for his enemies and the orders to escort them to safety is palpable. However, as Blocker slowly changes his attitude towards his captives, observing their humility and strength in adversity, the result, when it so easily could have depreciated into pastiche, is introspective and believable.

Hostiles does pose interesting questions about whether killing through duty is ever justified and where the line that makes taking life a murderous act and punishable by law, is drawn. How people can exist in such a brutally hard environment with virtues intact is also a key theme. The answers offered by the film are frequently blurry and obscured though towards the final third when the seventh, eighth and ninth bodies are buried these questions are posed a little too obtrusively and the film starts to become slightly one note as the grief is overcooked. However a film is always commendable when it dares to delve a little deeper and prod a little further than the vast majority of Hollywood offerings. In a pertinent message for these increasingly divided and uncertain times, it is clear by the closing stages that Cooper is positing our salvation or damnation to be intrinsically tied up in one another, whether we like it of not. ‘We are all hostiles’ goes the tagline.

If this is the type of film we can expect from the revival of the western, long may it continue.